Mr. Burr (for himself
and Mrs. Boxer) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on the
Judiciary

A BILL

To add Vietnam Veterans Day as a patriotic and national
observance.

1.

Vietnam Veterans Day

(a)

Findings

Congress
finds that—

(1)

the Vietnam War
was fought in the Republic of South Vietnam from 1961 to 1975, and involved
North Vietnamese regular forces and Viet Cong guerrilla forces in armed
conflict with United States Armed Forces, allies of the United States, and the
armed forces of the Republic of Vietnam;

(2)

the United States
Armed Forces became involved in Vietnam because the United States Government
wanted to provide direct military support to the Government of South Vietnam to
defend itself against the growing Communist threat from North Vietnam;

(3)

members of the
United States Armed Forces began serving in an advisory role to the Government
of the Republic of South Vietnam in 1950;

(4)

as a result of
the Gulf of Tonkin incidents on August 2 and 4, 1964, Congress overwhelmingly
passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (Public Law 88–408), on August 7, 1964,
which provided the authority to the President of the United States to prosecute
the war against North Vietnam;

(5)

in 1965, United
States Armed Forces ground combat units arrived in Vietnam;

(6)

by September
1965, there were over 129,000 United States troops in Vietnam, and by 1969, a
peak of approximately 543,000 troops was reached;

(7)

on January 27,
1973, the Agreement Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam (commonly
known as the Paris Peace Accords) was signed, which required the
release of all United States prisoners-of-war held in North Vietnam and the
withdrawal of all United States Armed Forces from South Vietnam;

(8)

on March 29,
1973, the United States Armed Forces completed the withdrawal of combat units
and combat support units from South Vietnam;

(9)

on April 30,
1975, North Vietnamese regular forces captured Saigon, the capitol of South
Vietnam, effectively placing South Vietnam under Communist control;

(10)

more than 58,000
members of the United States Armed Forces lost their lives in Vietnam and more
than 300,000 members of the Armed Forces were wounded;

(11)

in 1982, the
Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated in the District of Columbia to
commemorate those members of the United States Armed Forces who died or were
declared missing-in-action in Vietnam;

(12)

the Vietnam War
was an extremely divisive issue among the people of the United States and a
conflict that caused a generation of veterans to wait too long for the United
States public to acknowledge and honor the efforts and services of such
veterans;

(13)

members of the
United States Armed Forces who served bravely and faithfully for the United
States during the Vietnam War were often wrongly criticized for the policy
decisions made by 4 presidential administrations in the United States;

(14)

the
establishment of a Vietnam Veterans Day would be an appropriate
way to honor those members of the United States Armed Forces who served in
South Vietnam and throughout Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War;

(15)

March 29 would
be an appropriate day to establish as Vietnam Veterans Day;
and

honoring and
recognizing the contributions of veterans who served in the United States Armed
Forces in Vietnam during war and during peace;

(3)

encouraging
States and local governments to establish a Vietnam Veterans Day; and

(4)

encouraging the
people of the United States to observe Vietnam Veterans Day with appropriate
ceremonies and activities that—

(A)

provide the
appreciation veterans of the Vietnam War deserve, but did not receive upon
returning home from the war;

(B)

demonstrate the
resolve that never again shall the people of the United States disregard and
denigrate a generation of veterans;

(C)

promote awareness
of the faithful service and contributions of the veterans of the Vietnam War
during military service as well as to the communities of the veterans since
returning home;

(D)

promote awareness
of the importance of entire communities empowering veterans and the families of
veterans in helping the veterans readjust to civilian life after military
service; and

(E)

promote
opportunities for veterans of the Vietnam War to assist younger veterans
returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in rehabilitation from wounds,
both seen and unseen, and to support the reintegration of younger veterans into
civilian
life.